After finishing her meal, Hinata walked back to the classroom alone. As she reached the doorway, a familiar voice made her stop in her tracks.
"Thanks to his transfer, the teacher finally let me move to the seat in front. Sitting next to Hinata was such a drag."
"Right? She always looks so gloomy. I wonder what she's thinking about—does she have some kind of mental illness?"
"No idea~ Anyway, I'm finally free!"
Hinata lowered her head and waited until the two boys walked away before slipping quietly into the classroom.
When she returned to her desk, her former deskmate's books were already gone—clear proof of how eager he'd been to leave.
She couldn't even blame him. Someone like her really was boring.
With a soft sigh, she rested her head on the desk.
Ever since she was little, she had felt almost invisible—untalented at everything. Every homeroom teacher wrote nearly identical comments about her: "Well-behaved. Has potential. Just doesn't apply herself."
If life were a game, she would be the NPC wandering around the starter village—one that repeats the same single line no matter how many times you click on her.
Even her father had long since given up hope.
Maybe in my next life, I'll be a snail. When I don't want to face anything, I can just retreat into my shell and sleep.
Lost in gloomy thoughts, Hinata buried her face in her arms.
On most days, she spoke fewer than ten sentences. She often wanted to change—but by the time she gathered the courage, the moment had already passed. She never dared to start a conversation, and even when someone spoke to her first, she would stammer until the discussion died awkwardly.
Her spoken words were timid.
Her inner world, however, was overwhelmingly rich.
If there were a word that described her perfectly, it would be social anxiety.
That was why she envied Naruto—someone who always said exactly what he was thinking and acted without hesitation.
Her complete opposite.
Ding-dong.
The bell rang. Lunch break was over.
Classes began as time moved forward—and ended just the same.
As Hinata stood up to pack her bag, several girls approached her desk.
She knew them. They called themselves her friends, but mostly treated her like an errand runner.
They had long realized she struggled with social anxiety. Whenever she hesitated to do something, they would simply brush it off with, "But we're friends, right?"
This time, they wanted her to join them for karaoke with some "cute boys." They needed someone tone-deaf to make themselves sound better.
"N-no… I'm not going."
Keeping her head down, Hinata avoided eye contact as she nervously zipped her bag.
"We begged those guys to let you come. Are you trying to embarrass us?"
The leader frowned and grabbed Hinata's wrist. "Or what? Do you hate us? Don't want to be our friend anymore?"
Hinata clenched her teeth. Her thin frame trembled.
Then suddenly, she pulled free, grabbed her bag, and ran out of the classroom.
"Tch. What's wrong with her?"
"She's probably still upset about that thing last time. Someone must've said something."
"You mean that guy who's always getting detention—Uzumaki Naruto?"
The first girl snorted. "Birds of a feather. Forget her. Let's go."
——
Hinata ran all the way to the school gate, gasping for breath, her face pale.
For someone who hated exercise, that short sprint felt like half a month's worth of training.
She bent over, trying to catch her breath—
And just then, Naruto and his group walked out through the school gates.
She bit her lip, straightened up, and quietly followed behind them.
She had confidence in her stalking skills.
With her almost nonexistent presence, there had even been times on school trips when teachers failed to notice she had been left behind.
But today was different.
When the trio reached the pedestrian street, Aizen suddenly stopped. He turned around with a gentle smile.
"At first I thought we just happened to be heading the same way," he said. "But it seems you have another purpose, Hinata."
"That uniform—she's from our year, our school," Sasuke added.
Hinata froze.
Realizing she had been discovered, she instinctively turned to run—
"Hinata? What are you doing here?"
Naruto turned around and immediately recognized her, looking puzzled.
"I—I…"
Her mind went completely blank. Her mouth opened, but no words came out.
"Sneaking after us—I get it! You must be…"
Naruto's eyes suddenly lit up as he pointed at her, his expression turning serious.
I'm done for. He's going to call me a creepy, gloomy stalker…
Hinata's eyes welled with tears.
"…wanting to buy a Pokémon, right!"
Naruto's eyes sparkled.
"Uh—y-yes! Exactly!"
Startled, Hinata waved her hands in a fluster before nodding vigorously.
"Then don't follow us secretly—just come with us! I know everything about this stuff!"
Bragging confidently, Naruto grabbed her hand, completely unaware that her face had turned so red it looked like steam might rise from it.
As they walked, Hinata explained how she had learned about Pokémon, while Naruto and Sasuke enthusiastically described the Pokémon Shop.
Between the two of them, they practically portrayed the shop manager, Jiang Shi, as some kind of ancient overlord reincarnated.
As for Jiang Shi's true identity, Aizen had his own suspicions. But probing recklessly might anger him—and who knew when that shadowy Hollow might appear and knock someone flying?
The four of them arrived at the Pokémon Shop.
However, the usually sleepy manager who lounged at the counter was nowhere to be seen.
Bang!
A heavy crashing sound came from the back.
"Sounds like the backyard," Naruto said immediately.
"Could it be the Federal Mages found this hideout? Damn it—if something happened to the manager, it's my fault…"
Sasuke's chuunibyou tendencies flared up again, his expression turning grave.
"Enough. Let's check the backyard," Aizen said calmly, shaking his head.
After witnessing Darkrai, he doubted anyone could truly threaten Jiang Shi.
Whoosh—
As Aizen pushed open the back door, a man's body flew through the air in a perfect arc.
"Ow!"
Kurama reacted instantly, using Disable to freeze the body midair.
"Cough… truly… a formidable foe…"
With that dramatic declaration, the man fainted.
"Chairman?!"
Aizen stared in shock.
The man who had nearly crashed into him was Uchiha Madara!
Sasuke scratched his cheek awkwardly, looking slightly embarrassed for their organization's leader.
"He barged in demanding to witness Pokémon power," Jiang Shi said with a shrug. "So I let my Pokémon spar with him. What else could I do?"
Beside him, Victini used Confusion to gently float Madara into the lounge.
"He'll be fine… right?" Aizen asked cautiously.
"Relax. My Pokémon deliberately avoided vital areas," Jiang Shi replied calmly.
Still…
To withstand several direct hits from a Mythical Pokémon and only pass out?
Humans in this world were absurdly tough.
No wonder the term "Super Rookie" existed.
Will Madara turn into a battle fanatic who spends his days challenging Pokémon?
As Jiang Shi pondered this possibility, he waved everyone back into the shop.